BenRiach just added a new bottle to its permanent range of peated whiskies, named BenRiach Temporis. It means ‘time’ in Latin and according to the distillery it ’emulates the original character and flavour of Speyside malts in the 19th century’.
To create the new single malt they have used a combination of 4 different casks, namely virgin oak, ex-Bourbon, ex-Pedro Ximénez and ex-Oloroso sherry casks.
The BenRiach Temporis is 21 year old, an age that doesn’t occur very often with peated Speyside whiskies, and is bottled at 46% ABV.
Benriach Temporis 21 year old tasting notes:
Nose: On the nose I get quite some red fruits, sweet subtle peat. Somewhat meaty. And there is a descent amount of the sherry influence of chocolate, cream and darker fruits. A few spices in the background. It is a very nice nose where it all just comes together. The peat is developing and becomes more dominant after a while.
Taste: Creamy peat, milk chocolate, also a layer of honey sweetness. A leathery note. Weird enough a hint of green apple. Followed by a handful of blueberries, raisins and there is a nutty element in there. And some spices here as well; black pepper, cinnamon and some nutmeg.
Finish: The finish is mid-long with dark chocolate, some red fruits and a subtle sweet peat note.
The thing with older whiskies is that the peaty aspects tend to settle a bit and become more subtle. In this whisky it is actually subtle and then starts to surface later on. I think that is what makes it very interesting. The flavours also seem to work well together, which makes it a very enjoyable and balanced whisky.
